What Affects Morale in Law Enforcement Officers and How it May Be Improved

Abstract

This research paper will look into the current causes of lowered morale as provided from interviews of current road patrol law enforcement employees. This research will also explore their opinions on how to combat these stressors and raise morale in their agency. Police work can be a thankless job and is always in view of the public eye. Constant negative stories involving law enforcement circulate in the media on a constant basis. When an agency experiences low morale within its police officers, the plague will show. Low morale in a single officer can have an influence on other fellow officers. There might be several reasons behind the low morale observed by the law enforcement officers. Nonetheless, this study aims to classify the major reasons behind the low or high morale experienced by the law enforcement personnel. In addition, this research does not bind the responses in data collection process to certain limited options. The study aims to gather the data through the process of qualitative measures. The data for this study is collected by using open ended questionnaires in order to record diverse and valid responses of the sample size. Through qualitative research approach this study enlightens the core reasons behind the low morale experienced by the law enforcement officials in order to recommend effective strategies through which law morale among the law enforcement officials can be diminished.

Table of Contents

Abstractii

Introduction4

Problem Statement6

Literature Review8

Methodology27

Research Design27

Sampling29

Data Collection Process29

Instrument30

Data Analysis Technique30

Results and Findings31

Recommendations37

Discussion and Conclusion39

References42

Appendix47

What Affects Morale in Law Enforcement Officers and How it May Be Improved

Introduction

As the most visible part of the criminal justice system, law enforcement agencies, more commonly referred to as police agencies, have a unique role within American society. There are several unique features of government-mandated local police forces. First, police are authorized to use force, including deadly force, to enforce compliance with local, state, and federal laws. Second, police may legally detain individuals and remove them from society via arrest. Third, police are given discretion to enforce existing laws and to maintain public order. Finally, police must perform many duties, including law enforcement, restoration of order after traffic accidents and other emergencies, and provision of emergency assistance to those who are ill, injured, or need drug treatment. Many historical figures and developments have influenced the state of modern police agencies. Most researchers locate the starting point for formal policing in mid-eighteenth century England. In the 1740s, Henry Fielding organized a small group of paid constables to enforce local laws.

This group later became known as the Bow Street Runners. In 1829, Sir Robert Peel initiated passage of the Metropolitan Police Act, which created a broader police force—one that had several units and was responsible for law enforcement throughout London. These new forces quickly spread, and by the 1840s, the large majority of English towns had local police forces mandated by the national government. Policing in the United States developed in a similar manner. As in England, early policing was ...